CHICAGO, June 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Like most industries, the workers' compensation industry has hurdles that challenge growth and operational effectiveness. Now, a number of workers' comp executives have come together to produce an operational assessment tool to help industry Claims leaders.

Different from many workers' compensation studies, this research focuses on specific day-to-day operational hurdles that claims organizations experience, as opposed to the industry's overall state of affairs, cost drivers, or jurisdictional comparisons for example. The purpose of the 2013 Workers' Compensation Benchmarking Study – surveying claims leaders throughout June – is to provide actionable data around these industry-wide challenges:

Prioritizing Core Competencies

Measuring Best Practices

Incentivizing Operational Excellence

Training & Retaining Staff

Assessing the Impact of Technology & Data

Evaluating Medical Management Performance

The survey is open to management-level leaders who oversee workers' compensation claims operations from organizations such as insurance carriers, employers, third party administrators, government entities, and risk pools. Claims leaders who take the survey will receive a copy of the Study Report.

The Study's Project Organizer, Rising Medical Solutions saw a gap in available research about how claims organizations were dealing with daily operational challenges. "When we talked to others, they saw the same gap and were receptive to a community conversation," says Rising's CEO Jason Beans.

Recognizing the need for unbiased research, the Study is being guided by Independent Project Researcher, Denise Algire of Risk Navigation Group and more than a dozen claims and industry executives on the Study's Advisory Council, including:

"Critical to the success of any Study is creating a framework that will produce compelling and impartial data," says Algire. "Working with the Advisory Council has produced insightful Study focus areas that will support claims executives with meaningful information for their leadership role."

Claims leaders who want to participate in the Workers' Compensation Benchmarking Study can take the survey by clicking here. The Study Report will be published in the Fall 2013.

About the Workers' Compensation Benchmarking StudyThe Workers' Compensation Benchmarking Study delivers actionable data to claims leaders. The Study Report is generated from confidential survey results from workers' compensation leaders nationwide. The Study creation stems from a joint effort on the part of industry executives from more than a dozen organizations.